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45 Cal.

Been reading about using mobil 1 synthetic oil on guns, just curious what your thoughts are on this. I bought a can and will give it a try. If it works a quart should last a long time. Allso those that use ballistol claim to get a brown rust in barrel after using, I don't think it is rust myself, I have noticed it myself when swabbing the bore, a brown tint on the patch. What you guys think?

32 Cal.

Mobil 1 Synthetic does work very well as far as down barrel rustproofing. I know a gunsmith who uses it on large collections for people.

Ballistol works also, and it is far more versatile because it's a rustproofer, lock lube, patch lube, wipe on your stock oil, and cleaning solution.

I've e-mailed Ballistol about the brown tint thing. They said it is absolutely not rust, and that the unique thing with Ballistol is that it always continues to act as a cleaner when in the bore and that's what you are seeing. According to them that as long as Ballistol is mixed at least 4-1 with water it will neutralize the corrosive effect of BP, and then used straight for rust proofing. I tend to believe them because I never see any sign of rusting in my guns, and it cleans off/up with dry patches, and dry patches aren't going to remove any actual rust. Ballistol does seem polarizing among a lot of BP shooters though.

I've used Ballistol long term in a gun with success, and I think Barricade and especially Rig are perhaps the best for storage purposes since they tend to stay where put.

50 Cal.

I've never tried motor oil yet but do intend to. I feel a little experimenting is part of this hobby. And I'm gonna try ATF sometimes also. Oh if most synthetics are made from petroleum, what is synthetic oil made from?

Whale Oil used to be very popular, and if you're in Norway with a black powder rifle or gun, it still is... if you're visiting don't try to bring it home to The States though...
I've used ATF fluid...I've used it mixed with STP and Kroil...
I've used Ballistol…,
I've used WD-40...,
They all seem to work, and if I'm going to put a rifle up for a several months, OR if it's not a rifle I normally shoot so may go back on the rack for a year or more...Barricade by Birchwood Casey.

40 Cal

Been reading about using mobil 1 synthetic oil on guns, just curious what your thoughts are on this. I bought a can and will give it a try. If it works a quart should last a long time. Allso those that use ballistol claim to get a brown rust in barrel after using, I don't think it is rust myself, I have noticed it myself when swabbing the bore, a brown tint on the patch. What you guys think?

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I’ve used it on AR platform and it works well. It’s very good against carbon deposits. But CLP works as well and I have used it for many years...

Cannon

I like mink oil and wiping my guns regularly. I do keep barricade in a tin bottle that I wipe with when done cleaning. Check the next day or two then use a mink oil greased patch to rub down the metal and swab the bore.

45 Cal.

I like mink oil and wiping my guns regularly. I do keep barricade in a tin bottle that I wipe with when done cleaning. Check the next day or two then use a mink oil greased patch to rub down the metal and swab the bore.

45 Cal.

Seems the mobil 1 is a little thicker than clp, seems to wipe on even, have noticed some oils seem to puddle. I know I get a bit (or a lot) carried away on this subject. I have probably 5 different oils within hands reach on my bench. When it comes down to it, I would guess about any oil will do. But, I just retired and have nothing better to do right now!!!

I use Mobil-1 in all of my vehicles. IMO, it is one of the best motor oils on the market.

That said, it is a motor oil, not a gun oil. It has additives to stabilize its viscosity, remove varnish buildup, prevent foaming, prevent acid formation, provide extreme pressure lubricity, and a host of other things that gasoline engines need but, none of these things are needed in a gun.

Like the other motor oils, if it is present inside the barrel in a muzzle loading gun it will mix with the black powder fouling and form a hard, difficult to remove fouling. Because of this and the fact that almost none of the additives are needed in a muzzle loader I don't recommend using it.

There are a lot of different gun oils out there made specifically to meet a guns needs so I think using one of them is a better idea.

Whale Oil used to be very popular, and if you're in Norway with a black powder rifle or gun, it still is... if you're visiting don't try to bring it home to The States though...

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Wise advice. Reportedly, Jojoba oil is nearly identical to whale oil in many respects. It is supposed to be sold by Walmart but my local store doesn't have it. I want to try it out, mainly for patch lube, one day.

Something a lot of people are not aware of is that if a product has Teflon in it, it may cause damage if used in rifled barrels. The Teflon has a relatively low melting point that can liquify under the pressure and heat generated in a barrel that can then build up in the groves of the rifling and become nearly impossible to remove. CLP, Remoil, and the like are great for moving parts in modern repeating arms, but can cause buildup in fast twist rifling. How this would apply to a slower moving bullet/round ball and the heat generated in a muzzleloader barrel I am not sure. I imagine that it is much less of a concern in our application, but thought it was worth noting nonetheless. Food for thought at the very least.

Cannon

I had some whale oil years ago. It was neat to own some since it was the ‘best’ and irreplaceable. However in use I couldn’t tell it from mink oil.
My locks didn’t seem to be any smoother, by barrel wasn’t any more rust free, my few groups shot with my precious horde were not any smaller.

50 Cal.

Years ago my uncle, who was an ametuer watchsmith, gave me a couple of small bottles of a "very fine oil" for watches. I think I still has have one. It's more than likely a petroleum product from Switzerland . It's a thin colored oil that looks like Transmission fluid in color and consistency. Would a fine watch oil be any good in a firearm?